How to Match Wine With a Roast Pork

By Tucker Cummings

Roast pork and wine are a winning combination. “The other white meat” — as pork is sometimes called — pairs equally well with both red wines and white wines. Different factors go into selecting the perfect wine pairing for a roast pork meal. If you have plans for a roast pork dinner, picking the complementary wine will involve careful consideration of the setting, ingredients and occasion for this particular dining event.

Check the weather. There’s no hard and fast rule for when to serve wine on a seasonal basis, but many people prefer a white wine in the summer and a red in the winter. This has a lot to do with the cooler recommended serving temperature of white wine, making it more refreshing when dining al fresco. If you are eating outside, you may want to select a white over a red for just this reason.

Contemplate the occasion. If you are serving pork for a birthday, anniversary or holiday, nothing says celebration quite like a bottle of sparkling wine or champagne. Sometimes pairing wine for the occasion is even more important than pairing with the food, and festive occasions always call for something bubbly.

Pair by region. Serve recipes or ingredients from a certain geographic area with wine that is also from that area.

Consider the flavor profile of the dish. For roast pork with a mustard-based glaze, try a gewürztraminer or a côtes du rhône. A sweeter, Chinese-style roast pork pairs well with champagne, pinot grigio or white zinfandel.

Go with pinot noir. The pairing of pork and pinot grapes is so beloved that there is even an annual cooking event — “Pigs and Pinot” — dedicated to the pairing of these two items. The brainchild of noted chef Charlie Palmer, the event will be familiar to fans of “Top Chef,” as it was featured in a Season 6 episode. With such a noted culinary event dedicated to this pairing, pinot noir and roast pork is always a safe bet.